The women’s soccer team will seek to improve in Ivy League play when it takes on Dartmouth this Saturday at Reese Stadium.
The Elis (4–4–2, 1–1 Ivy) will look to get back in the win column after suffering a tough 2–1 overtime loss to archrival Harvard last Saturday. Though the Bulldogs took an early 1–0 lead on a goal from Meredith Speck ’15, the Crimson came out stronger after halftime and tied the game midway through the second half. Harvard’s Peyton Johnson then scored the game-winning goal in overtime on a penalty kick that was given after a controversial handball was called in the box.
After splitting its first two league contests, Yale currently stands in a four-way tie for third in the Ivy League alongside Dartmouth, Penn and Brown. Head coach Rudy Meredith said this weekend’s matchup with the Big Green will be key if the Bulldogs want to remain in the hunt for the Ivy League crown.
“We have to bounce back and play well,” Meredith said. “If we want any chance of winning Ivies, we can’t lose again.”
Speck and forward Melissa Gavin ’15 have both scored a team-high three goals this season and also lead in points along with midfielder Enma Mullo ’12.
Goalkeeper Adele Jackson-Gibson ’13 has started all of the games in front of the net this year and has posted a 0.87 goals against average while stopping 40 shots.
In last season’s meeting between Dartmouth and Yale, the Bulldogs came away with a 3–1 win in Hanover, N.H. Kristen Forster ’13 and Mary Kubiuk ’13 both netted goals to help power the Elis past the Big Green. The Bulldogs are currently riding a three-year win streak against their Ancient Eight rivals.
Though Dartmouth (3–7, 1–1) opened Ivy League play with a 1–0 overtime loss to Brown, the Big Green evened its conference record by defeating Princeton last week, 1–0. Forward Aly O’Dea scored the lone goal in the contest to lift Dartmouth past the Tigers.
The Big Green has struggled to find the back of the net this season and has scored just five goals through 10 games. Freshman forward Tasha Wilkins leads Dartmouth with two goals and four points. Though Dartmouth ranks last in the Ivy League in offensive production, the Big Green has tallied nine yellow cards this season — the most in the conference.
“They’re bigger than we are [and] a little stronger than we are, so we have to play better soccer than them,” Meredith said. “They’re a very physical and athletic team.”
Goalkeepers Tatiana Saunders and Colleen Hogen have both seen time in net for the Big Green this season and have compiled 1.59 and 0.59 goals against average, respectively.
Kickoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Reese Stadium.